updated 09:05 am EDT, Fri August 26, 2011

Panasonic Lumix FX90 gives Wi-Fi photo uploads

Panasonic's point-and-shoot Lumix cameras got their own upgrade Friday with the line's first Wi-Fi capable version. The FX90 after an initial setup can push photos and videos directly to Facebook, Flickr, Picasa, or YouTube without needing a computer or an Eye-Fi card. When away from home, it also has a matching app for Android and iPhones, Lumix Link, to share photos locally and use the device's 3G or 4G if the owner wants to make them public.

A matching web service known as Lumix Club (not fully active) is needed for the app to work but will have its own photo components. Along with storing photos, it should have a way to share albums between friends and offer Flickr-style commentary.

As a camera, the 12-megapixel FX90 is at the higher end of the compact scale with an unusually bright f2.5 maximum aperture and a 5X optical zoom. Primary control comes through the three-inch touchscreen which, much like the Olympus E-P3, can use the finger input for focusing, zooming, and even the basic shutter. The precision helps for post-shot effect editing and can help give veteran photographers more control by letting them put certain camera controls up at the top level through shortcuts.

Performance is enough to support recording 1080i at 60FPS (outputting at 1080p, 30FPS) as well as Dolby Digital-created stereo audio.

Lumix Club is due to go live September 5, but the camera in question doesn't yet have a price or ship date and won't get either until within about 30 days of the release.